A5024094399- Cocoa and Sweet Potato Agronomy
- Weed Control and Herbicide Applications
- Food Chemistry and Fat Analysis
- Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies
- Plant and animal studies
- Agronomic Practices and Intercropping Systems
- Agriculture and Rural Development Research
- Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Dynamics
- Biological Control of Invasive Species
- Organic Food and Agriculture
- African Botany and Ecology Studies
- Agricultural Innovations and Practices
- Mediterranean and Iberian flora and fauna
- Agroforestry and silvopastoral systems
- Oil Palm Production and Sustainability
- Conservation, Biodiversity, and Resource Management
- Nematode management and characterization studies
- Agriculture Sustainability and Environmental Impact
- Agriculture and Biological Studies
- Plant and soil sciences
- Allelopathy and phytotoxic interactions
- Sustainable Agricultural Systems Analysis
- Agricultural Systems and Practices
- Mycorrhizal Fungi and Plant Interactions
- Composting and Vermicomposting Techniques
Forschungsinstitut für Biologischen Landbau
2015-2024
Universitat de Barcelona
2010-2024
Institut de Biologia Evolutiva
2017-2024
Fundación Biodiversidad
2018
Research Institute of Organic Agriculture
2015-2017
Forschungsinstitut für biologischen Landbau
2016-2017
Abstract Scientific knowledge, societal debates, and industry commitments around sustainable cocoa are increasing. Cocoa agroforestry systems supposed to improve the sustainability of production. However, their combined agronomic, ecological, socio-economic performance compared monocultures is still largely unknown. Here we present a meta-analysis 52 articles that directly monocultures. Using an inductive, multi-dimensional approach, analyzed differences in total system yield, economic...
Premise of the Study Despite long‐term research efforts, a comprehensive perspective on ecological and functional properties determining plant weediness is still lacking. We investigated here key attributes arable weeds compared to non‐weed plants, at large spatial scale. Methods used an intensive survey communities in cultivated non‐cultivated habitats define pool plants occurring fields (weeds) one only open non‐arable (non‐weeds) France. two pools based nine traits three spaces ( LHS ,...
Maintaining soil quality for agricultural production is a critical challenge, especially in the tropics. Due to focus on environmental performance and provision of ecosystem services, organic farming agroforestry systems are proposed as alternative options conventional monoculture farming. Soil processes underlying services strongly mediated by microbes; thus, increased understanding microbiome crucial development sustainable practices. Therefore, we measured related indicators bacterial...
Summary 1. Agricultural intensification, at field and landscape scales, has caused a decrease in weed richness changes species composition. In order to prevent this loss of diversity develop efficient management regimes, it is important understand how both aspects intensification affect plant the way which they interact. 2. This study assessed centre, edges boundaries 29 organic conventional cereal fields distributed 15 agrarian localities NE Iberian Peninsula. We focused on composition...
Pests and diseases threaten cacao production worldwide. Agroforestry systems are traditionally seen by farmers as one of the causes increased pest disease incidence, in contrast with full-sun monocultures. Cultural management practices—e.g. regular tree pruning, frequent pod harvest, removal infested pods, weed management—have been reported to be crucial for management. We performed two experiments purpose assessing effect (i) different systems, (ii) frequency harvest pods on incidence pests...
Summary There is a growing interest in the use of functional approaches for study weed assemblages, to disentangle underlying processes determining their composition and dynamics. Functional are based on assumption that community dynamics can be best explained by set species traits expressing response agricultural disturbance. This knowledge should help develop more sustainable, ecologically management systems. Trait‐based data required this kind analysis available from various sources, but...
This study presents an evaluation of the food-energy-water nexus (FEWn), complemented by a thorough life cycle assessment (LCA), four young cacao production systems: two full-sun monocultures and agroforestry systems under conventional organic management. Land footprint (LF) for food production, non-renewable cumulative energy demand (NR CED) energy, total water (TWF) water, three efficiency indicators FEWn were all analysed. In addition, ten LCA impact categories evaluated in relation to...
S ans FX, B erner A, A rmengot L & M äder P (2011). Tillage effects on weed communities in an organic winter wheat–sunflower–spelt cropping sequence. Weed Research 51 , 413–421. Summary Conservation tillage could provide environmental benefits to farming. However, potential problems often tend discourage farmers from adopting it. The of (reduced vs. conventional), fertilisation (slurry manure compost) and the application biodynamic preparations (with without) crop yield cover, diversity...
Reduced tillage reduces soil erosion and increases topsoil organic matter compared with conventional tillage. However, yields are often reported to be lower, presumably, due increased weed pressure a slower N mineralization under farming conditions. The effects of reduced ploughing on infestation winter wheat performance at four different crop stages, i.e., tillering, stem elongation, flowering, harvest, was monitored for single season in an eleven-year-old long-term trial. To disentangle...
The present work analyses the sustainability of food security in cacao monocultures and agroforestry systems under organic conventional management. Using a novel approach, we developed indicators to assess crucial dimensions security, including land labour productivity, nutritional quality food, their nexus with energy efficiency consumption. Our ten-year data showed that monocultures, especially ones, are more productive (in terms labour) when only main crop (cacao) is considered...
SUMMARY Agroforestry systems (AFS) can serve to decrease ecosystem carbon (C) losses caused by deforestation and inadequate soil management. Because of their shade tolerance, cacao plants are suitable be grown in AFS, since they combined with other kinds trees shrubs. The potential for C sequestration farming depends on various factors, such as management practices, stand structure plantation age. We compared conventionally organically managed monoculture (MCS) AFS Sara Ana (Bolivia) respect...
Abstract Questions Do diversity components (α, β and γ) differ across contrasting regions? What is the relative contribution of organic conventional farming practices to structuring arable weed species different functional groups (legumes, grasses broad‐leaves)? To what extent do communities between regions systems (organic vs conventional)? Location Twenty‐six farms in total northeast S pain ( C atalonia) north G ermany L ower axony). Methods We examined flora paired at each locality...
Abstract Cocoa-based agroforests are promoted to replace monocultures for the provision of ecosystem services. However, shade tree pruning, an important tool sustain cocoa yields, is not commonly implemented. This study investigates effect pruning on both agronomic and economic performance. In Bolivia, four famers’ sites were divided in half, trees pruned one two plots. Pruning resulted a significant increase yield, from average 430 710 kg ha −1 by boosting flowering pod production, but...
Systematic studies on the economic competitiveness of organic farming systems compared to conventional are particularly lacking in tropical environments. In regions, evaluation production typically concentrates main cash crops earmarked for export markets. Consequently, grown rotation or association with these have been largely overlooked, their contribution farm profitability is often considered negligible due perceived challenges securing premium prices. To address this knowledge gap, we...